Drivers: show concern

We have all just returned from Thanksgiving and, as I return, I bring with me a new perspective on many things.

From my apartment, it takes me a little over two hours to drive to my home in Granger, Ind. Thirty minutes into my drive home last Tuesday, I am on State Road 25 and I decide to pass a driver in a red Nissan. The events that occurred during my attempted pass have really changed my life.

The stretch of 25 that I was on happened to be two lanes, so passing this driver meant that temporarily I needed to move over to the lane designated for oncoming traffic. I crept up on this person, and I'm not sure if he/she did not see me or if they simply did not want me to pass them, but, about the time my front bumper was even with the red Nissan's driver-side door, the driver swerved into my lane.

I used my horn, then realizing that the driver was going to stop, I desperately tried to avoid side-swiping the car by actually moving onto the shoulder of the road. On the shoulder, which was a combination of mud and gravel, I tried to break in order to get back behind the Nissan. The slick shoulder caused my breaks to lock up and that sent me into a severe fishtail which ended up spinning my car back across traffic, into a ditch on the other side of the road.

The spin, which could not have lasted more than a handful of seconds, felt like slow motion. I sat, strapped in my seat, completely helpless to stop what was happening. I knew that, at any moment, a car coming from behind could have crashed into the door my arm usually rests on, ending my life. I actually thought: these are the last breaths I'll ever take.

Those are some scary and surreal thoughts to contemplate. They are thoughts you never truly expect to go through your head, ones that can only be forced in by circumstance.

All I wanted to do was go home and eat some turkey. Instead I'm thinking about my own death as my car ends up in a slimy mud-hole of a ditch.

It took me a moment to realize exactly what had just happened, and as I did, I scanned quickly over my body looking for blood and feeling for pain. Nothing. I was completely fine. I was shocked.

I got out of the car, stepped into knee-deep mud and saw that no one else had been involved.

Several people had pulled over to make sure that everything was OK. The person driving the aforementioned red Nissan fled. Somewhere probably between the driver chatting on their cell phone, blasting their stereo and searching for a new CD they failed to realize that they had just caused an accident or they just ignored it. Either way, the motorist had driven off, cowardice and all.

So I am left with nearly $6,000 in damages to my Saturn, having to replace most of the body. More than that, I am without my car for a few weeks, which is more than enough punishment for any sin I have committed. I certainly believe that justice will be served and some sort of karma will leave a suitable discipline for the one driving the red Nissan.

The reason I wanted to share my story is so that fewer people will end up in my situation.

If you are driving and you witness an accident — particularly one that involves injury — stop and, first of all, make sure everyone is alright. If not, then do what you can to help. If you have the means, immediately call the police. Do not assume that the accident has already been reported. If everything is fine, stick around until the police arrive so that you can give an account as to what you have witnessed.

If you're like champion red Nissan driver and cause an accident, but no damage is caused to your vehicle then, for the love of all that’s holy, pull over and take responsibility for what happened. I for one would never want to deal with the guilt of what is basically an equivalent to a hit-and-run.

For drivers who find themselves in an accident without sustaining any injuries, remember to turn off the car. It might seem like a trivial thing but it's also an easy (and dangerous) thing to forget. I did.

For everyone else on the road, please stay patient. Don’t ever think that you are in a hurry. You are only jeopardizing your life and the lives of others. Be extremely aware of other drivers. As shown, they cannot always be depended on to do the right thing, and sometimes do the complete wrong thing. Always be ready for when they do.

Shawn McGann is a senior in the School of Technology. He would like to thank the operator of the red Nissan for the concern shown during their getaway. And, yes, Shawn is fine. He can be e-mailed at opinions@purdueexponent.org.

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